Beef grades give us a clue about the quality of barbecue

There are some things that Texans seem to know by heart, if not by instinct: the history of the Alamo and San Jacinto, how to catch a fish or hunt for deer, and how to choose the best piece of beef for backyard grilling.

In the case of beef, we may not know as much as we think. Standing before a supermarket meat counter, with a full 10 yards of bright red cuts of cow before us, why should we choose one piece over another? Similarly, how do we know what quality of beef is being used at our favorite barbecue restaurant?

We all know that the meat we get at supermarkets and restaurants is "USDA certified." But what does that mean? Well, it's all in the label.

Virtually every piece of beef you will eat will be stamped with the label of the United States Department of Agriculture. Like just about anything we buy, beef can be qualified as good, better or best. The USDA has established a beef grading system that provides consumers, chefs and barbecue pitmasters with a shorthand way of determining the quality of beef. It works like this.

When cattle are slaughtered at a processing facility, an employee of the USDA is on hand to grade the resulting beef. The grading process is complex, but the two key factors that determine the quality of beef are marbling (intramuscular fat) and maturity (age). In general more marbling and less age make for a tasty and tender piece of beef, so the highest quality beef has a lot of marbling from relatively young cattle.

The USDA grader looks at a specific portion of the carcass to make the grade - in the rib eye muscle between the 12th and 13th ribs. Based on the marbling in that area, the entire carcass is then assigned a grade - select, choice or prime.

Keep in mind that all three grades are great for the purposes of eating beef. It's really just a matter of which pieces are good, better or best. Naturally, the price of prime beef is higher than select.

Select grade beef is the "lowest" grade and tends to be leaner and have less marbling. This is what you usually see packaged in the supermarket display case. It's fine for grilling at home.

Curiously, "select" grade beef used to be labeled as "good" grade. But apparently "good" was not good enough because nobody bought that grade. Then in the 1980s, Americans jumped on the dieting bandwagon and demanded leaner cuts of beef. Marketers at the USDA saw the opportunity and rebranded "good" as "select" beef. Diet-conscious Americans ate it up and the amount of select beef sold in the U.S. soared.

The next grade of beef is called "choice" and is characterized as having "modest" or "moderate" marbling. Some steakhouses and a lot of barbecue restaurants use this grade. It's a good balance of cost and quality. Choice grade is further divided into three parts: upper, middle and lower choice.

The highest grade of USDA certified beef is "prime." This has the most marbling and therefore is the most tasty and tender. The best steakhouses and a few barbecue restaurants only use prime beef. Killen's Barbecue in Pearland, CorkScrew BBQ in Spring and the Brisket House in Houston are known for prime-grade beef.

It's important to note, however, that the grade of beef used at a barbecue restaurant does not guarantee that the barbecue will be good or bad. I've had great barbecue made with select briskets, and bad barbecue made with prime grade. In the hands of a talented pitmaster, any grade of beef can be cooked to a world-class standard. Seeing a higher grade used at a barbecue restaurant just gives you an idea about the commitment of the pitmaster and a better chance of getting great barbecue.

Still, the USDA grades are relatively basic. With that in mind, some beef producers use the grades as a baseline and then add additional quality specifications to tell consumers that they believe their beef is the best. The best known of these certifications is "Certified Angus Beef," graded based on the USDA marbling standards as well as on considerations like the breed of cattle (Black Angus).

The American Angus Association, an industry group of cattlemen, owns and managed the Certified Angus Beef brand and trademark. With the blessing of the USDA, they monitor the standards they've established and make sure their members follow the rules to assure the highest quality of beef associated with their brand.

Other "USDA Certified Beef Programs" are based on a specific ranch's or beef processor's specifications and include brands like 44 Farms Premium Natural Black Angus, Creekstone Farms Premium Beef and Tyson's (IBP) Chairman's Reserve Certified Premium Beef.

Although the grade of beef is not a guarantee of quality, it does give consumers and barbecue lovers a clue about what they may be getting. Whether you're ordering a brisket plate at your favorite barbecue restaurant or picking out a steak at the supermarket, a little knowledge about beef grading goes a long way.

Grades of beef

The quality grade of beef evaluates tenderness, juiciness and flavor. Factored in are carcass maturity, firmness, texture, color and the amount and distribution of marbling.

USDA Prime: Abundant to slightly abundant marbling.

USDA Choice: Moderate to modest marbling.

USDA Select: Slight marbling.

USDA Standard: Trace to practically devoid of marbling.